galaxy s4

Samsung and LG Electronics could find themselves in another patent squabble, this time over eye-tracking technology.

Samsung's Galaxy S4 and LG's Optimus G Pro both will offer an eye-recognition feature that automatically reacts to the movement of the user's eyes.

The Galaxy S4 already comes built with Smart Scroll, which lets people scroll through the screen and trigger certain actions by moving their eyes up and down. The phone also includes Smart Pause, which pauses a video when a person looks away from the screen.

LG will add a Smart Video eye-recognition feature to its Optimus G … Read more

The Samsung Galaxy S4 and Galaxy Note 2 are on a short list of devices rumored to see an Android 5.0 Key Lime Pie update, according to SamMobile.

A select few members of the Samsung Galaxy smartphones are expected to see an update to the next version of Android, presumed to be OS version 5.0, known as Key Lime Pie.

A "prelist" of updates apparently obtained by the mobile blog suggests that the soon-to-be-released Samsung Galaxy S4 will be joined by four other models to receive the forthcoming Android 5.0 OS, including various versions of … Read more

Not wowed by the HTC One or Samsung Galaxy S4? One analyst says never fear -- Apple is preparing a killer feature for the iPhone 5S that will crush the notion that smartphones are becoming a commodity product like so many soybeans traded on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (or smartypants similes on gadget blogs).

If you've been paying attention to the almost monthly march of big-time smartphone releases for the past year and a half, you may have noticed a pattern. Each new iPhone, Android flagship, and even the Lumia and BlackBerry, is faster, more powerful, and prettier than the last with a few gimmicky features that raise eyebrows for a few weeks, but no game-changing innovation.… Read more

Samsung Electronics' theatrical launch of the Samsung Galaxy S4 was just the stage rehearsal for its eventual split from Google and Android.

During the hour-long production -- and it was more of an over-the-top Broadway show than an actual product launch -- neither Samsung's executives or the troupe of actors once mentioned Google or Android.

It wasn't until the specifications were displayed on the large screens flanking the stage after the event concluded that attendees found out that the Galaxy S4 would run on Android 4.2.2, the latest version of the operating system, also known as … Read more

During its bizarre unveiling of the Galaxy S4, there were a few accessories that Samsung didn't get to spend much time on. For example, some reporters later stumbled upon a wireless charging feature, and a prototype of a nifty gaming controller that docks with some Galaxy devices while pairing via Bluetooth has also popped up.

The controller is dubbed simply the "Game Pad" and looks an awful lot like it came off of an Xbox 360. Samsung says it is capable of one-touch Bluetooth pairing via Samsung's funky NFC Tectile system, which works with the Galaxy S3 and Galaxy S2 as well, among others. It also functions as a remote control for use with your bigger screens at home.… Read more

Apple sent me an e-mail yesterday.

The subject line was: "How will you love it? Let us count the ways."

Given that the e-mail's subject was the iPhone 5, this was an odd thing to be saying to someone who already owns an iPhone 5.

I like my iPhone 5. Love, though, comes to me quite rarely and often when I least expect it.

So sending me a long list of why I will love something that I already own seemed a forced and hurried response to the launch of Samsung's Galaxy S4.

But a response … Read more

Samsung's just-launched Galaxy S4 is nothing special -- it's simply another member of the wannabe-iPhone crowd. At least that's what Apple would have you believe by way of a new marketing effort for its storied handset.

"There's iPhone. And then there's everything else." reads the headline on a Web page added to Apple's site today -- two days after Samsung trotted out the S4 during a splashy (and, to some, rather puzzling) event at New York's Radio City Music Hall.

The Apple Web page -- reachable by way of a button … Read more

The new Samsung Galaxy S4 has launched, but savvy wireless customers looking for a bargain may still want to consider last year's Galaxy S3.

In this edition of Ask Maggie, I help a reader decide if the newly upgraded flagship Samsung smartphone is worth the hype. There's no question the device is a marked improvement over its predecessor the Samsung Galaxy S3. But the upgraded specs and added bells and whistles might not mean as much to the average consumer, who will likely be just as happy with last year's model, which costs less money.

I also … Read more